The
first U.S.-Islamic World Forum was held in the aftermath
the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United
States and sought to build bridges of understanding
between the United States and the Muslim World - as the
Forum still does today. The annual event has helped
create meaningful networks of American and Muslim
leaders accross the spectrum of government and civil
societies, encompassing the worlds of arts, business,
science and technology, education and religious faith.

This year’s edition convenes under the title: “New
voices, new directions”, where 247 personalities from 31
countries and organizations including high profile
politicians, media figures and decision-makers, as well
as a panel of distinguished experts and academics will
contribute to the lively plenaries and group sessions
addressing important and varied issues:

• Political Change: The Dynamics of Domestic
Transformations
• 2012 U.S. Presidential Elections
• Strategic Change: New Geopolitical Challenges
• Democratic Transitions in Arab Spring Countries
• The Role of Arts, Culture and Modern Media in Daily
Life
• The Role of an Independent Rating Organization
• Developing New Mechanisms to Promote Islamic
Charitable Sector
• Water Security in the MENA Region

The Opening will take place during a gala dinner on
Wednesday 30th and will be presided over by His
Excellency Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim bin Jabr Al Thani,
Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the
State of Qatar, in presence of this year’s guests of
honor Her Excellency Sheikh Hasina, Prime Minister of
Bangladesh, H.E Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, Secretary General
of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and H.E
Rashad Hussain, U.S. Special Envoy to the Organization
of Islamic Cooperation.

The U.S.-Islamic World Forum will be held over 3 days
from 29-31 May 2012 at the Ritz-Carlton in Doha, and will be co-organized by the
Permanent Committee for Organizing Conferences (Ministry
of Foreign Affairs of the State of Qatar) and the
Brookings Center.

Participants in the US-Islamic World Forum, which concludes later today, highlighted the US 2012 presidential election.
The participants in today's discussion session included William. A. Galston, Senior Fellow for Governance Studies at Brookings Institution, Dalia Mogahed, Executive Director and Senior Analyst of the Gallup Centre For Muslim Studies, Shibley Telhami from the University of Maryland and Adraha, Michael Doran, Senior Fellow at Saban Center for Middle East Policy. More...

The ongoing political and ensuing economic crisis in the Middle East and North Africa have engaged the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in vigorous efforts to bring about political stability by promoting good governance, democracy, rule of law, human rights and tolerance. More...

Participants in the US-Islamic World Forum on Wednesday highlighted the forces inspiring and shaping cultural development across the Muslim world during the "Arts and Culture" panel, held at the Doha Ritz Carlton Hotel. More...

The Prime Minister and Foreign Minister H E Sheikh Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabor Al Thani, yesterday took the opportunity at a key US-Islamic forum that began here yesterday to urge Washington to do more to help the people of Syria. More...